In a multitude of commercial applications, it is common to employ heavy-duty conveyor belts for the purpose of transporting products and materials. Such conveyor belts can be very wide, for instance ten feet wide, and very long, for example, on the order of many miles. They can also be up to about three inches thick or even thicker. In any case, heavy-duty conveyor belts are widely used for moving minerals, coal, and a wide variety of manufactured products from one point to another. For instance, heavy-duty conveyor belts are often used in typical mining applications to transport minerals below the ground, to above the surface, and ultimately above ground to a desired location for processing and/or ultimately for transportation on rail road cars, trucks, barges, or ships.
Conventional conveyor belts which are used in heavy duty applications are typically comprised of a cured rubber as a top layer (the carry cover layer), a cured rubber as a bottom layer (the pulley cover layer), and a steel reinforcement layer which is situated between the top layer and the bottom layer. The predominant material used in such conveyor belts generally is a moderately flexible elastomeric or rubber-like material, and the belt is typically reinforced by a plurality of longitudinally extending steel cables or cords which are positioned within the belt and extend along the length thereof.
All conveyor belts are, of course, susceptible to normal wear and tear as well as damage from the material being transported and/or harsh environmental conditions. Over the years, substantial improvements have been made in the wear resistance of the rubber used as the cover carry layer of the conveyor belts and the useful service life of conveyor belts has been extended. However, transporting highly abrasive materials can quickly wear away the carry cover layer of conveyor belts. In any case, conveyor belts which are used in mining operations are particularly susceptible to damage from the material transported thereon and a rip, slit, cut or tear may develop on the surface of the belt which comes in contact with the material being transported (the carry cover surface of the belt). For instance, sharp edges of the material being transported, such as iron ore and copper ore which are particularly abrasive, can gouge the surface of the belt and that can result in a rip developing and propagating deeper into the body of the belt. Such damage can ultimately result in belt failure. In any case, all conveyor belts including those that are utilized in application which have light demands have a finite long service and ultimately must be replaced.
In the world today, there is a demand for end-of-life recyclability of many consumer and industrial products including both large and small conveyor belts. However, recycling rubber products which are reinforced with steel reinforcing elements presents a particular challenge since it is generally necessary to separate the steel reinforcing elements in such rubber products from rubber components thereof. After such a separation has been completed it is then, of course, possible to recycle the rubber in one recycle stream with the steel being recycled in a separate recycle stream. However, such a separation is not an easy task since measures are taken for the steel reinforcing elements to be bonded securely to the carcass of the rubber product so that separation does not occur during its service life. In any case, it is not energy efficient or cost effective to remove steel reinforcing elements from conveyor belts by applying high levels of mechanical force to separate the steel reinforcements from the belt using conventional technology. Nevertheless, there has been a long felt need for an energy efficient and cost effective means for separating steel reinforcing elements from conveyor belts.